POLITICS: Israeli Writer Defends Arafat

A distinguished Israeli writer describes Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat as a statesman sensitive to the concerns of Israel.

MIDEAST: Arguments End But the Wall Goes On

Three days of hearings into the legality of the barrier being built by Israel in the West Bank ended before the International Court of Justice here Wednesday just as they began - with passionate legal arguments inside, and highly emotional protests outside.

MIDEAST: West Bank Wall Goes Before Court

In eagerly awaited hearings set to begin here Monday, the International Court of Justice will be asked to decide on the legality of the barrier being built by Israel through the occupied West Bank.

MIDEAST: Gazians Fear It May Not Be Goodbye

Outside the Israeli settlement of Neve Dekalim a group of Palestinians waited patiently under a corrugated iron roof near an Israeli barrier to cross back to their village.
     The Gush Katif bloc of settlements in southern Gaza, of which Neve Dekalim is one, have cut their village Al-Mawasi off from the larger town of Khan Younis and the rest of the Palestinian controlled areas.

POLITICS: Israel Frowns on Pakistan’s Nuke Leaks, India Cautious

India's eagerness in cultivating a new friendship with Israel will likely stop short of making common cause over the revelation that rogue scientists in neighbouring Pakistan have been leaking nuclear technology to some of Tel Aviv's worst enemies.

IRAQ: Embedded or In-Bed-With?

Senator Hiram Johnson would be long forgotten by now, were it not for his one famous quote: ''The first casualty when war comes is truth," he said in 1917, and every armed conflict before or since has brought that phrase back to life.